Re: Rambler Mentality

["amc74hornet" <amc74hornet@xxxx>]

--- In BaadAssGremlins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "Eddie Stakes" <eddiestakes@xxxx> wrote:
> Haha, actually I coined that phrase in the late 80s and well, it stuck. It
> was not meant to be derogatory towards Rambler owners, as heck, I'm a
> Rambler owner myself (see below). It was more of a being beyond cehap I
> guess thought process one sometimes deals with vending parts. It is not only
> confined to Ramblers or AMC. I had a friedn, Don Waits, his nickname in
> these parts was Mr. Mopar and specialized in E bodies. You could find him at
> many major mixed make meets in TX, OK, LA. One day, some Mopar fan came up
> to him and asked him if he would take $25 for a pristine Six Pack air
> breather setup (at the time, those sold for $300+, God only knows what they
> sell for now!) and he told them he would let them touch it for $25. They
> offered him $100 and he responded he would let them sleep with his wife for
> $100.
> When they asked what he wanted for it, he said $300, and firm, the guy said
> 'there is another fellow over there with one for $200, and Don shot back,
> 'then what the hell are you doing over here wasting my time, by the time you
> get back over there it will have sold'. Of course there was NO other six
> pack setup, just swap meet talk you know, someone trying to bluff this old
> man.
> 
> One day however, Ramber Mentality will be a thing of the past AMC lore, as
> either you will need the part, or do without, and that is happening quicker
> and quicker these days with less and less used parts to choose from. You can
> read many of my thoughts in the March Hemming's in the 71-74 AMX Buyers
> Guide that Mark McCourt wrote, he used a whole LOT of my thoughts and
> phrases from a long, rambling, (rambling mentality perhaps?) unibomber
> manifesto I sent. I was humbled, but also alarmed. Humbled in that Hemming's
> considered and used my thoughts, alarmed as I didn't want to give a false
> impression that 71-74 AMX parts are readily available at Pep Boys or Auto
> Zone, and some stuff is gone forever.
> 
> Look at it like this: Next time you walk out to your AMC
> (insert model like Gremlin here) while the AMC hobby has made great strides
> in reproduction parts int he past 5 years (more AMC stuff has flooded the
> market in the past 5 than the past 15 years combined) please remember
> however that a staggering 90% of the parts on <YOUR>
> AMC will NEVER BE REPRODUCED.
> 
> Sheetmetal. Glass. Doors. Chrome and brightworks. Bumpers. Interior soft and
> hard moldings. Grills. Lenses. Think about it. Used, used, and used, and
> what is out there is simply out there, and the biggest mistake any AMCer can
> make is simply thinking that there is a bottomless pit of parts that will
> always be available for "their" car.
> 
> So hopefully those folks who need whatever will buy it, and those who have
> extra will share it, and we will continue to see more repro stuff come along
> too. But if you personally have extra parts for sale, let others know and
> recycle into the hobby. If you know of a AMC in salvage, or sitting on a car
> lot or appears in your area Auto Trader or Thrifty Nickle, then please share
> the info with everyone, as you can make a difference. Gee, I sound like that
> big arsonist bear in the woods with the cap he got after he ate the ranger.
> 
> But if you need something, as usual, shop around for your best price,
> condition, new or used, and watch out for 'Reverse Rambler Mentality' on
> ebay, that is when someone buys a 'NOS window crank' for $40 when they could
> have bought the same 'NOS window crank' in the Help! section at local auto
> parts store for $8. Or two more of my favorites: 'NOS Rebel Machine oil
> dipstick tube!' like AMC stopped a mass production facility to press a oil
> dipstick tube for a car that they could not give away when new. Or 'NOS
> Spirit/Eagle/Concord head light adjusters!' Yup, some poor fool on ebay buys
> them for $25, not realizing you can almost buy the whole rack of them at
> local auto parts stores for that much, same deal, look under the red
> lettered box and bags of Help! products! Happy junkyarding, parts pulling,
> collecting, vending, Eddie Stakes' Planet Houston aMX
> www.planethoustonamx.com
> PS: there is more than the Rambler Mentality file on my site, check out the
> 'getting hosed by the NOS label on ebay' file too:
> http://www.planethoustonamx.com/parts%20&%20Literature/bodyParts.htm
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "lumina333" <lumina3@xxxx>
> To: <BaadAssGremlins@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Friday, March 19, 2004 6:39 AM
> Subject: [BaadAssGremlins] Re: Rambler Mentality
> 
> 
> Didn't Eddie paten that phrase? LOL....that was one of the first
> articles I read on Eddie's site, and thought about writing him to ask
> if he would sell one of those AMC dealer flags for $25 as a
> joke....figured I'd better not though since my computer is not made
> of asbestos *grin*...-Lu-
> 
> > This is not a place to be useing the Rambler mentality. Pop for the
> extra 150$. You won't be sorry you did it.
> > "Doc"
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Yahoo! Groups Links

Sometimes you have to go for it if you want the part. My son saw a set of lower valance signal lights for one of his Javelins at the Ct. show 2 years ago. The price was real cheap but the guy was not at his swap meet booth. I knew the vender through a freind of mine. My son said we will come back later and get them. I told him we will go find him and buy them NOW!!!. After we found him and my son was handing the guy the money some guy walked up and said "Hey you bought my lights" Sorry my son told him, he who waits on a rare part is lost. I guess my son has learned the Rambler Mentality and when to just go for it if you need it. Like Eddie say's the well is drying up fast. I bought some Hornet interior parts just to have 2 years before I bought the new Hornet and boy am I glad I did. 
"Doc"